


Broken Bonds

by Kitashi



Series: Through Eyes of Courts and Fate [18]
Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Breaking the Bond, F/M, Rhysand POV
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-11
Updated: 2016-08-11
Packaged: 2018-08-08 01:41:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7738537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitashi/pseuds/Kitashi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rhys’s POV of Chapter 66-68, plus some extra from ACOMAF.</p><p>Completely at his mercy, Hybern has Rhys, Feyre, and their Inner Circle exactly where he wants them. Or does he?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Broken Bonds

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! :D
> 
> Let me cut right to the chase: I'm sorry! (I'm not actually sorry.)
> 
> I've been working on this one for awhile, trying to get it just right.
> 
> Let's put it this way: I'm pretty much Lady Stoneheart when it comes to writing tortured Rhys fics.
> 
> I felt bad writing this one.
> 
> Despite the broken hearted bat, I hope you enjoy this fic! Thank you all for the sweet comments, the kudos, and just generally reading my fics. I really can't say enough just how much it means to me, and how wonderful I think you all are <3
> 
>    
> With that said: THIS CONTAINS HEAVY SPOILERS FOR BOTH BOOKS, BUT ESPECIALLY FOR THE END OF ACOMAF. YE HAVE BEEN WARNED!
> 
> Enjoy! :D

I couldn't believe this was happening. Ambushed and captured by Hybern, my general’s wings shredded, my spymaster being poisoned slowly by ashwood, my mate’s sisters captured and turned into High Fae, and a delusional High Lord trying to take my mate.

I didn't dare let myself think about how today could possibly get worse. Hybern had us right where he wanted us. But I had to do something.

“If you're so willing to hand out bargains,” I said to Hybern, “perhaps I’ll make one with you.” I held Feyre next to me, like both of our lives depended on it. If this didn't work, we were probably all going to be dead. If that was the case, at least I would get to die with my mate by my side. It was a small comfort.

“Oh?” The king seemed interested. I shrugged nonchalantly. Anything to give us more time to think of a plan to get out of here.

Feyre suddenly dropped out of my arms to her knees in a spasm, sobbing, pulling hard at her hair. I reached for her, panicked, trying to figure out what was happening. Whoever was doing this to her, especially if they were in this room, I would kill them for harming my mate; wards and walls around my magic be damned. Suddenly, she let out a flash of white light. Day Court magic.

Happiness... She was glowing with happiness? That didn't make any sense at all.

And then it hit me. She’d figured something out, something important I needed to know. And I was the only one who would recognize her sign.

She let out another flash of light, one so bright that I had to shield my eyes to keep from being blinded.

As the light faded and the white spots in my vision cleared, I noticed that she was now curled in a ball on the floor, her head in her hands, like she had a headache. She slowly unfurled her body, looking confused as all hell. I started to reach for her, but stopped. She looked at everyone in the room like we were strangers. Her gaze focused across the room, where Tamlin and Lucien stood with her sisters.

“Tamlin?” she breathed. I raised an eyebrow.

“Tamlin?” she said again, almost… happy? She caught sight of her bloodstained hands, and she turned around slowly, looking at each of us in turn; as though she didn't recognize Azriel, Cassian, or Mor. When she got to me, she looked horrified and scrambled away from me, out of my reach. She hadn't acted like that since Under the Mountain.

“Where-” She faced me again, her face scrunched up in confusion. “What did you do to me?” She backed towards Tamlin, her expression getting angrier with each step. _“What did you do?”_ Her voice guttural, low. Betrayed.

My heart broke as I looked at her in confusion, not understanding. Had the King screwed with her memories when we weren't paying attention? Had I read the light wrong? It wasn't like we would even notice if he had done anything, what with this wall around our magic, and the wards keeping us here-

Suddenly I had a realization. The oppressive feeling that had been weighing on my shoulders since Jurian and Hybern had revealed themselves was gone. The wards were gone.

My clever mate had broken the wards keeping us here. Hybern clearly hadn't noticed; he was just as dumbfounded as everyone else at her sudden change of heart. We could get out of here. Maybe Cassian's wings could still be saved. We just needed a distraction.

It was up to me to play my part now.

I shoved my hands in my pockets. To hide my clenched fists. I could feel the cool metal of the two halves of the Book of Breathings at each of my fingertips. “How did you break free?” I purred. My cruel, Court of Nightmares mask. Our bond was still maddeningly silent, thanks to Hybern's spells, but I knew what she had meant. We had always played so well together. But this lie we were spinning was slowly going to kill me to do so.

“What?” Jurian seethed, pushing off the wall where he had been watching everything with amusement, storming towards Feyre and Tamlin. Gone was the psychotic laughter, replaced with the laser focus I remembered of him before Amarantha killed him.

Feyre turned towards Tamlin, her expression pleading and broken as she did. He watched her warily, not entirely sure what was going on. “Don't let him take me again, don't let him- don't-” Feyre let out shuddering sobs, and my heart broke even more, if that was even possible. I wanted nothing more than to gather her up in my arms and take her away from the _him_ I knew she was actually referring to, but I had to keep in character.

“Feyre,” Tamlin said softly. He’d bought it. Thank the Mother he’d bought it. It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

“Don't let him take me,” she sobbed again. “I don't want to go back.”

She looked at us, at me, her eyes trying to convey what our bond currently could not.

“What did you do to that girl?” Mor spat at me, hatred and horror in her voice. Good, she understood too.

I cocked my head. “How’d you do it, Feyre?” It was taking everything for me to keep my voice calm, to keep from shattering this charade and whatever Feyre's ultimate plan was with it. I trusted her completely, but I didn't like not knowing what end we were working towards.

The hag queens made a wall between us, as though their useless mortal bodies would actually work as some kind of shield. I wanted nothing more than to mist them where they stood. Tamlin watched Feyre carefully as she shook her head. Lucien too. The king though, was smiling. He didn't believe her.

But then she said, “Break the bond.”

I froze, feeling my stomach drop like I was in a nauseous freefall, icy horror creeping through my veins. What the hell was she-

She stormed over to the king, dropping to her knees in front of his throne.

“Break the bond,” she begged, her voice broken. “The bargain, the- the mating bond. He- he made me do it, made me swear it-”

“No,” I breathed. Begging. Even though I knew that she knew exactly what she was doing, the emotion in my voice was real. I knew there was no way for the King of Hybern to actually break our mating bond. That the fool even thought he could showed his arrogance. But to release Feyre even from our bargain, for anyone to break it but me… if he could actually do what he claimed, it was going to hurt us both. Badly.

Not that we needed the bargain anymore. It had never occurred to me to actually break it since she had chosen to stay with us. We hadn't needed it for a long time. On the other hand, I also never thought we'd be in the position of Feyre pretending that she had been compelled by me, forced into all of this either.

“Do it,” she begged the king. “I know you can. Just- free me. Free me from it.”

“No.” I couldn't stop the very real panic from rising in my voice. The silence between our bond was driving me mad as it was. For it to be permanent… I didn't want to think about being alone in my thoughts again; of not feeling the warm, comforting presence of her love just half a thought away.

“No more. No more death - no more killing.” She sobbed through clenched teeth. She looked at her sisters, soaked to the bone from the Cauldron, watching her with confusion, their own plight momentarily forgotten. “ _No more._ Take me _home_ and let them go. But no more- please.”

She was sacrificing herself. For the lives of everyone else, for those she loved, she was giving up herself. She looked at us again, looking broken as the words left her lips. “No more,” she said again, turning back to Tamlin, unable to look me in the eye. “Take me home.”

Tamlin turned to the king. “Let them go, break her bond, and let's be done with it. Her sisters come with us. You’ve already crossed too many lines.” I thought that was ironic coming from him, but I bit my tongue.

Jurian began to object, but the king said, “Very well.”

“No,” I begged. My heart broke at the pain in her eyes when she looked at me once more, knowing what this was costing her. We were all playing the parts she needed us to, but I didn't have to like it.

Tamlin snarled at me. He’d always been more beast than Fae. “I don't give a _shit_ if she's your mate. I don't give a shit if you think you're entitled to her. She is _mine_ \- and one day, I'm going to repay every bit of pain she felt, every bit of suffering and despair. One day, perhaps when she decides she wants to end you, I’ll be happy to oblige her.”

But I didn't look away from my mate. I would deal with the delusional fool later. “Don't.”

But she backed away - until she hit Tamlin's chest, until his hands moved to her shoulders. “Do it,” he said to the king.

“No,” I said again, my voice breaking.

But the king pointed at Feyre. And she let out a scream that sliced through me like an Illyrian blade.

Tamlin gripped her arms as she thrashed in pain, her screaming endless, bloodcurdling, heart wrenching. I fell to the ground in blinding pain, Feyre the only thing I could think of as I clung to our bond, trying to keep us connected. I felt someone, likely Mor, grab my jacket collar, trying to anchor me to the real world as I was lost in our bond.

I felt, heard, a snap, the white-hot pain making my vision go black. And then it was no more. There was nothing. Feyre abruptly stopped screaming.

She’d fainted.

I panted, my world cleaved in two. I couldn't feel her because of the king’s magic, but I knew. The bargain was actually _gone_ …

I managed to look up shakily. Tamlin held her, but… there was no love as he looked her. No worry if she was all right, no gentleness… nothing but stone cold determination. Even Lucien looked worried.

Feyre began to stir.

Without a word, Tamlin ripped the glove off of her left hand.

Blank skin. The tattoo had admittedly not been necessary when we had made our bargain, but I had gotten so used to seeing it on her that the lack of it was jarring. I’d never gotten to tell her what the Illyrian marks meant. That it had been my way of secretly wishing her luck and glory in her Trials, in her battle against Amarantha.

The king merely waved a hand at us; he’d fulfilled his part of his bargain with Tamlin. “You're free to go, Rhysand. Your friend’s poison is gone. The wings of the other, I'm afraid, are a bit of a mess.”

I managed to haul myself up, and I stared at them, the ones who had caused such chaos and destruction for such selfish reasons. Covered in both of my brothers’ blood, enraged that my mate was now held in the arms of a self-centered prick that hadn't been able to accept her answer. I couldn't feel her, and it was driving me crazy.

Suddenly, Mor winnowed. We could winnow again.

She appeared right in front of Lucien and slammed him back with a palm to his chest, knocking him down. She grabbed Elain and Nesta and disappeared. Lucien let out a roar, his newly discovered mate bond driving him to want to protect Elain with all that he was. I felt some sympathy for him, but I was glad that Mor had thought to grab them. They had been through enough because of us.

I knew I had to act quickly, but I looked back at Feyre one last time as I grabbed Azriel and Cassian. As I was leaving her behind.

I didn't like it. But I didn't have to. Feyre knew what she was doing. I had to trust her.

 _I love you. So much. I will get you back_ , I said to the stone wall between our bond. And I winnowed to Velaris, leaving my mate behind.

~~

The first night of her being gone was the worst.

After I had revealed what she and I had done the night before to the rest of my Inner Circle, as they discovered that their friend, sister, and now High Lady was in the clutches of our enemies, they demanded answers while the healers did their best to help Cassian and Azriel. Amren sat in stunned silence as I explained the best I could. I’d never seen my Second surprised like that.

We hadn't done it for this. It had been a contingency plan on my part. Had Hybern done anything to me, Feyre could have ruled our court without worrying who the power would pass to. My power would all be hers. And if we hadn't needed it, then we would happily rule side by side.

After the healers had stabilized Cassian's wings as best they could for now, and managed to give Azriel a tonic to help him recover from the toll that the poison had taken on his body, I climbed the stairs to Feyre's and my room. Mor had offered to take the first shift of watching them, Amren the second, and I left them with Mor clutching at Azriel's hand as he slept.

Feyre's scent in the room hit me hard, even though she had only moved in literally the night before. I couldn't believe that less than a day before, she and I were here, celebrating her new status as High Lady of the Night Court, taking our time with each other as though it would be the last time we would be together. I had never thought I would come back here without her.

I stripped my clothes off and lay on our bed, staring at the ceiling. The bed had always been big, to accommodate my wings, but it had never felt so lonely as it did in that moment.

I ran a mental finger along our bond, hidden in the destruction of our bargain, grateful that Hybern's arrogance had blinded him and that no one had thought to pay closer attention to our scents in the chaos. I felt a wave of love and reassurance in response. She was okay. I knew she needed to lie low for a little while, but her presence, even mentally, was reassuring.

Suddenly, something caught my eye from my desk. The box with my mother’s ring; Feyre's ring.

I sat up and grabbed it, staring at the box, not sure I should open it. After a long moment, I did, taking the ring out of the box. The star sapphire glinted in the moonlight that streamed through the window, like a star spirit on Starfall. I knew she couldn't have worn it yet, but it felt so wrong for it not to be on her finger.

I remembered the day my mother took it away from me and brought it to the Weaver clearly. _You are a man now_ , she had said as I protested. _Should you ever marry or mate, she will have to be smart enough or strong enough to retrieve this. If she can't, she'll never survive being married to you._

I turned the ring over in my hands before returning it back to its box and placing it back on my desk and returning to our bed.

And let my tears finally fall.

~~

I went to the cabin a few days later, to check on Feyre's sisters. Mor had finally had enough, and said she'd rather deal with ‘sick and whining Illyrians’ than take Nesta's attitude anymore.

The cabin was still standing when I arrived, thankfully. As I walked up the path to the door, I found Elain outside, planting seeds in a makeshift flower bed. She looked up when she saw my shadow.

“Oh, hello,” she said, with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. “How are you doing?” Her mental shields were practically nonexistent, but I could tell she wasn't displeased to see me. If anything, she was pensive.

“I wanted to check on you, to see how you and your sister were doing,” I said carefully. I didn't want to upset her.

“Oh, yes,” she said, “This place is very nice, and so convenient- Oh! I should invite you in!” Her cheeks colored. “Though really, it is your home, so really you don't need me to invite you in.”

“No, this is your home for as long as you like it,” I said, trying to put her at ease. While she was correct, I knew the feeling of having everything you know and love being ripped away from you. She relaxed slightly and gestured to the cabin. I followed her inside.

Much to my amusement, Nesta was sitting in Cassian's favorite chair, her eyes narrowing when she saw me.

“What do you want?” she said with no preamble. Elain glared at her.

“Nesta!” she hissed. I shrugged my shoulders.

“No, it's fine. I’d rather we not have false niceties. Better to be upfront with each other from the start.” I was being honest, but Nesta’s glare told me she got the message.

“So what are you going to do with us? We can't stay here forever.”

“You are free to do as you wish,” I said, “but as my mate’s sisters, know that you are safe here and I will do everything in my considerable power to make sure you are taken care of.” And I would too, if only for Feyre's sake.

“Taken care of?” Nesta seethed. “Just like you took care of us when we were stolen from our beds and turned into _this_?” She gestured to herself and Elain. “And I suppose letting Feyre go with that other lord is your way of ‘taking care of’ _her_?”

The flash of rage and guilt I felt at her words threatened to overtake my glamour. So this was what Mor was talking about. I knew this was how Nesta dealt with things, but I wondered for a moment how brash and confident Nesta would be if she saw who, or rather _what_ , she was really talking to. I almost wanted to find out. But I held back.

“Feyre is my mate, the most important thing in my entire existence,” I said coldly. My High Lord voice, so she would not know just how much her words had hurt me or how much she was trying my patience. “She chose to do this, for her court, as their High Lady, and to make sure her _family_ escaped. Do not think for a moment it did not cost me.” I made sure my tone let her know that this wasn't done just for her. Nesta scoffed, but didn't say anything else. She stalked out of the room, leaving me with Elain.

I ran a hand through my hair and let out a sigh. I took a seat at the table, running my fingers over paint splattered all over the table, left over from Feyre accepting our bond. I was glad it was still there.

Just days before we had been here at this very table, celebrating the beginning of the rest of our eternity. Talking about what we would do… and also doing far more pleasant things that both filled my heart with joy and sorrow at the same time.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I flinched, but looked up. It was Elain.

“She will be okay,” she said with conviction, though I could see in her unguarded mind that she wasn't sure. I appreciated the sentiment all the same. “She will be okay, and we will get her back.” I nodded wordlessly before turning back to the paint splattered on the table.

“Elain?” I asked after a moment, wondering if she was still there.

“Yes?”

“I’ve known Lucien for centuries; not always as friends. He… he has always looked out for Feyre, treated her as a friend.” I purposely left out how he had tried to forcefully take her back to the Spring Court once. “He's in a bad situation thanks to his High Lord. But Lucien is not Tamlin. I'm not saying you have to accept your bond. It is absolutely your choice and the bond goes nowhere unless you accept it. But... I think he would be good to you.” I felt like Lucien needed a fighting chance. I could relate better than I cared to admit to his plight. His High Lord had my mate, and I had his. I just hoped he would treat Feyre well in my absence.

She didn't answer, but I heard her footsteps fade as she left the room. I continued staring at the paint.

Feyre was an excellent actress. If I didn't know her so well, I might even have believed her façade. It was clear Tamlin did.

The pitiful fool. He had clung to an imagined, idealized Feyre that fit the demure, kept image he thought the wife of a High Lord should be. What she would have been if he had kept her a little longer as she slowly wasted away in his manor; if she had survived his neglect at all.

The only thing he and I had agreed on in the past few centuries was that Feyre had been through enough. And yet here he was, willing to throw the entire world into chaos to make her his again, willing or unwilling.

Little did he know that the secret hidden under her _other_ glove, under a glamour that even the oldest Fae would be proud of, made everything he had done worthless.

No matter what, he would never really have her. Feyre belonged to the Night Court, mind, body, and soul. And it was her choice.

When she came home, we would do it all, I decided. A wedding, a party celebrating our mate bond, her coronation as my High Lady… a big public spectacle like none the Night Court had ever seen or would ever see again. Everyone would know that she was mine, and I was hers.

Someday soon. And I couldn't wait for that day.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you thought! All comments and suggestions are welcome, & if you have a POV/scene you would really like to see, please let me know! Thank you for reading!
> 
> Also, I have a writing Tumblr! If anyone is interested in talking & discussing ACOTAR, ACOMAF, or giving suggestions/asking questions, I can be found at _<http://kitashiwrites.tumblr.com>_.
> 
> Hope to see you there!


End file.
